Paulette Bierzychudek -- teaching philosophy

I believe that students learn best by doing, rather than by being told. Therefore, I make every effort to actively engage students in the process of learning, whether the class is a small seminar or a lecture course of 100 students. Whenever possible, students work out-of-doors, where they can see the processes that we are studying first-hand. In all of my courses, I de-emphasize the acquisition of "facts" and promote the notion that science is a way of learning about the world, a method that students themselves can become experts at. They do this by frequent practice at posing questions, formulating hypotheses, and interpreting data, both their own and that collected by others. In addition, they do this by frequent writing to help clarify their thoughts or identify areas of confusion. Finally, I believe that students learn best when they are working together toward a challenging goal, and that they can learn a great deal from one another. For this reason I shape my courses around a considerable amount of collaborative work.

Created by: P. Bierzychudek
Last modified: 8 August 2001
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